don't knock it till you try it: Pilates

I heard about Pilates for the first time while riding in an elevator. I had recently graduated from college, and was working as a temporary administrative assistant at Target Corporation. Two well-dressed junior executive types (female) were in the elevator with me, discussing their workout routines. The blond was talking about jogging, and maybe running a 10K in the spring. The icy brunette nodded seriously, then declared, "I'm really into Pilates lately." The blond looked dumbfounded, realizing immediately that she was way behind the times. "It's like, this incredible full-body workout, that really focuses on your core," explained the brunette. 

Not surprisingly, this encounter turned me off to the idea of Pilates for several years. Exercise fads can be pretty embarrassing, and this was clearly one of the worst--the kind that is embraced by people who've "got it together," who dress well and make good money and go out for sushi at least once a week. 

So I was a bit skeptical when, a few years later, a friend from work offered me her Pilates DVD. Janet said it was a great workout, but that she didn't need the DVD anymore, and wanted to give it to someone would might actually use it. I attempted to decline politely, but she insisted that I give it a try. 

You see, in a moment of weakness I had confessed to Janet that I wanted to start exercising again (after a ten-year break during which I drank vodka and visited many thrift stores). I had started riding my bike from junior high around the neighborhood, and evidently she thought it was time for me to "push my limits" a bit farther. 

I gave in and took the DVD. As I stretched out the living room floor in my stretch pants, too stingy to buy a yoga mat, I initially had unpleasant flashbacks to my childhood. I remembered a summer when I was about 10 years old during which I became obsessed with losing weight. I watched endless idiotic aerobics TV shows, and ate nothing but microwave popcorn. Was I going to revert to that? 

I decided not to worry, and carried on with Mari Winsor's 20-minute workout. At first, I was really embarrassed by the maniacal smiles of the Pilates models featured in the video--they reminded me of the crazed grinning of the Holy Angels Starliners (the kick squad at my first, despised high school). I forced myself to continue, however, and did the workout almost every day. 

After a month or so, I definitely seemed to be getting some results. And the exercise itself, with all the stretching and balancing, was actually enjoyable, almost "rewarding"--I felt like I was getting stronger, not just hysterically striving for skinniness. Eventually, I joined the YWCA where I take Pilates classes fairly regularly, and it's way better to take a class where the instructor can demonstrate things and correct your form. I've even tried some yoga classes (arguably much trendier than Pilates at the moment), but I feel like such a fraud at the end where everyone piously mutters "Namaste."